Media
Issue Date
1940-06-29
Volume
2
Issue Number
5
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The Seafarers^ Log
Seafarers' International Union of North America
OfficialOrgan of the Atlantic^ Gulf and Great Lakes Seamen
^ VOL. II NEW YORK, N. Y., SATURDAY, JUNE 29, 1940 446 No. 5
SlU WINS WAGE AND OVERTIME
RAISE DESPITE NMD SELLOUT
Labor to Be Victim
Of New Attack Under
Cover of Hysteria!
"Associated Farmers" of California Plan Drive
On Labor —Will Be Camouflaged as
War on "Subversive Activities
Leadership of the "Associated Farmers," antilabor fron
for California industrialists, has been overhauled by elements
pledged to fight unions with "iron fist" policies.
"Moderates" in the organization—that is, those who fa
vored "softpedaling" the drive against labor — have been
boosted out and "direct actionists" have been put in their
places.
This housecleaning and its purposes are described iu the
recent issue of "Business Week," a magazine for employers
Its Los Angeles correspondent tells the whole story of the
dramatic "coup."
Among those ousted, says the magazine, was Secretarj
Harold B. Pomeroy, who had been trying to convert the "As
sociated Farmers" to the idea that better relations with the
unions would be a good thing.
New Leaders Tough
The new regime includes Colo
nel Walter E. Garrison, who had
been one of the early president's
of the organization and a fore
most advocate of ruthless tactics
against unions; the present head,
John Watson, who clashed with
Pomeroy and Phil Bancroft,
wealthy ,landowner and banker
who ran for U. S. Senator on the
"Associated G.O.P. ticket with
Farmers" backing.
They are g.oing to wage their
new war against unions under
cover of the hysteria about "fifth
columns" and "subversive activi
ties," the account in "Business
Week" reveals. /
"Pincipal feature is to be an
anti'Red' campaign which, ac
(Continued on Page 4)
War Risk insurance
Bill Amended!
OBJECTIONS BY SW SUP ELIMNATE
SUB STANDARD LIABILITY BILL
BILL AS AMENDED
After being pigcondioled for about a year, the War Risk
Insurance Bill was brought before the Hou.se Committee on
Merchant Marine and Fisheries for final action before presen
tation to Congress. As originally drawn, the Bill established
extremely low liability for death and permanent injury to
seamen. The Bill set a low figure of $2,000 in the event of
death, and total disability, such as the loss of an arm or leg,
was based on the low death rate. Further, the Bill tended to
nullifiy the right) of seamen to sue for personal damages in
ease of injury:
Oppose Bill!
The SIU and SUP opposed
the bill in'its original form,
and when it was announced
that action was to be . taken
by the Committee on the bill,
Harry Lundeberg desighated
Morris W e i s b e r g e r, SUP
Ageiit at the Port of New
York, to appear on behalf of
the SIUSUP. In stating our
objections to the bill, Brother
Weisberger submitted a mem
orandum setting forth the fol
lowing contentions:
1. The draft of the bill pro
vides: Ridiculously low limits
on the lives of seamen,
2. The schedules for disability
are completely unsatisfactory.
3. There is no protection in the
(Continued from page 2X
NEWS FROM
Headquarters
Ballots Notice
Everyone Vote!
NEW YORK
Balloting on the main proposals
recommended by the Atlanta
Agents Conference will begin on
or about July 1s't at ai| branches
and headquarters and will con
tinue for four consecutive regu
lar membership meetings. Ballots
are prepared for a membership
referendum on the following ques
tions:
1. Amalgation of the Atlantic
and Guif Districts into one unified
setup; and
2. Uniform shipping rules for
the AtlanticGulf Districtt.
B^iallots Ready!
Ballots on the Amalgamation
question will be in the .form of
the resolution on amalgamation
as adopted by the Agents confer
ence. The resolution provides for
a centralized headquarters at
Washington, B.C. which would
also function as the legislative
office of the SIU. Many dual
functions and much of the fric
tion that now exists between the
Atlantic and Gulf districts would
be eliminated by amalgamating
the two districts.
Amalgamation of the Atlantic
and Gulf into one unified organ
ization will create a firmer basis
for further expansion as well as
to strengthen our position on
ships now under contract. The
resolution was adopted by mem
bership meetings at headquarters
and in the branches, and now
final action by referendum vote
before putting it into practice.
Ballots Ready!
Another ballot, will be on the
proposed revised shipping rules
as recommended by the Agents
conference. The object is to get
a set of more or less uniform
shipping rules for the Atlantic
and Gulf. There will be around
35 rules covering general ship
ping conditions and a few relat
ing to special cases. Each rule
will be voted on individually and
majority will decide which
ruled are to be adopted and which
rejected.
Everyone Vote!
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT
EVERY MEMBER VOTES ON
THESE BALLOTS! EXERCISE
YOUR RIGHT TO DECIDE
THESE IMPORTANT QUES
TIONS BY THE DEMOCRATIC
METHOD PROVIDED BY THE
CO.NSTITUTION OF THE OR
GANIZATION!
Members Act
On Bull Line
Proposals!
G. B. CARNEY—former
ly w.itertendcr on the S.S.
MARY of the Bull Line
get in touch with Scotty
Thompson, Assistant Secre
tary, as soon aa you can.
Coastwise Lines Grant
Increase As S.I.U.
Applies Pressure
CurrarPs Scavengers Undermine Wage ^
Standards and Working Conditions j
An agreement wa.s signed last week with the SeatraiB
Line, Inc., providing for a wage increase of ten dollars per
month phis an increase in the overtime rate of ten cents per
hour for all departments. Previously, the SIU had .signed
supplementary agreements for similar inereases with the fob
lowing coastwise operators: Range Lines, Canadian and GuH
Lines, Fall River Navigation Co., Waterman (for their coasts
wise ships). Through consistent pressure, the coastwise op
erators are gradually falling into line with the increased
wage and overtime rates established on tlie offshore and in*
tercoastal ships under control of the Seafarers InternationaL
^ Curran Wilts i
What has made our fight
for the higher wage and over*
time rates on the Coastwise
Lines extremely difficult is the
stand taken by the officialdom;
of the NMU that it was im
possible to get the increase
from the coastwise operators.
Curran speaking at an NMUl
membership meeting in Nev^
York on May 9th, in reference
to the coa.stwise lines, stated^
. . we can't get the $10 in
eerase.s . . . the companies are
going to turn us down flat.'*
These "great leaders" have
evolved a brilliant strategy te
cover their bankruptcy! The
teehiiiquo is to strut around
posing as "leaders" while
ACTING like scavenger.? This
is how it works: t
Fast Decisions!
H. McKenzie, reporting for the
NMU negotiating committee, stat
ed to the membership (Minutea
NMU membership meeting, May
9): "Well, we heard the SUP had
negotiated a $10 wage increase
on the demands of the NMU for
an increased war bonus, ws
raised the question for an lrt«
crease in wages for all the off
shore ships. The negotiations
took only one day, which were
rather fast negotiations. Of
course, we made fast decisions."
Membership Loses
McKenzie here confesses that
the NMU were taken completely
by surprise at the news that the
SUP had won an increase and ta
citly admits that prior fo receiv
ing the news, they had no inten
tion of raising the question of an
increase. In fact, they were tied
up with a two year agieemenfl
which they had previously ac
claimed as fhe NMU version of
(Continued on page 4)
A deadlock has been reach
ed between the SIU negotiat
ing committee and the Bull
Line officials over the union's
demand for an increase of ten
dollars per month plus ten
cents per hour in overtime, It
is the contention of the com
pany that it operates in the
coastwise trade in competition
with the Morgan Line, the
Porto Rico Line and other
lines under agreement with
the NMU. The fact that the
NMU is playing dead is one of
the worst obstacles confront
ing, our negotiating eommit
lee. Curran's fink agency is
like an anelior around our
necks.
Proposal Rejected!
Our committee made It plaifi
that we were not going to accept
substandard conditions just be
cause the iNMU is selling its
membership down the river. After
much arguing the company sub
mitted a proposal for a $2.50 per
month increase for ships running
strictly coastwise ,and $5.00 per
month for ships running to Porto
Rico—without the overtime in
crease. This was rejected by the
SIU committee.
{While the SIU nesotiathig
committee was meeting with
the Bull Line offiicals they
were informed that word had
been received that the NMU
had signed with the Porto
(Continued on page 4)
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THE SEAFARERS* LOG
ft:
Saturday, June 29, 1940]
ft.
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1^' •
I't':
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i • '• •
:
Publtshed by the
Seafarers^ International Union
of North Americd,
0 il//i7toted with the American Federation of Le^or.
HARRY LUNDEBERG, Acting President
110 Market Street, Room 402, San Francisco, Calif.
Atlantic District
HEADQUARTERS'
New York (Phone: BOwling Green 93437) 2 Stone Street
BRANCHES
Boston ...330 Atlantic Avenue
Providence 465 So. Main Street
PMladelBhia 6 Nortli Cth Street
Baltimore 14 North Gay Street
Norfolk , 60 Commercial Place
San Juan, Puerto Rico 8 Covadonga Street
Gulf District
HIADQUARTERS
New Orleans 309 Chartres Street
BRANCHES
Savannah 218 East Bay Street
Jacksonyllle >.,.... 136 Bay Street
Tampa 206 Franklin Street
Mobile 55 So. Conception Street
Texas City 105 4th Street
Great. Lakes District
HEADQUARTERS
Detroit .......1038 Third Street
AI>DRES8 ALL CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING THIS
PUBLICATION TO:
. "THE SEAFARERS' LOG"
P. O. Box 522, Church St. Annex, New York, N. Y. ^
Editor: Tom Kerry—Former Editor of "West Coast Firemen"
Editorial
Power vs. Propaganda
W err" R i sk I nswa nee
Biir Amended! '
{Continued from paye 1)
bill for the rights given sea
' men under section 33, Ship
ping Actof 1920.
(Under this section the seammi
are given the right to sue for in
jury.)
4. Provisions vyhich are already
a matter of, agreement under
collective bargaining con.
tracts receive no protection
vwhatewer=
(This means that ice have al
ready negotiated tear risk insur
ance liability directly with the
shipowners amounting to much
more than that provided in the
bill.)
Objections Filed
In reply to the objections filed
by Brother Weisberger, the fol
lowing letter was received from
S. 0. Bland, chairman of the
Committee on Merchant Marine
and Fisheries:
In one of the more recent of the numerous propaganda
sheets addressed to the members of the SIU by the socalled
"reorganization committee" of the NMU a ciuestion is raised
which warrants coMsideration by ALL seamen. It is the ques
tion of "POWER." This NMU sheet makes the following
Statement:
. . the SIU does not have the power to get for
you the wages and conditions you demand.
''THE NMU HAS THIS POWER. Witness the $10
i increase on passenger and freighter ships,~ over and
i above the regular scale. Witness the $5 raise on the
! tankerfrAND ALL SECURED WITHOUT LONG
I AND BITTER STRIKES. Why? Because the shipown
' ers know that the NMU represents 80 p6r cent of the
' American seamen, and is backed by the West Coast
Unions."
Some Pertinent Questions
Now all of this is very interesting! If the NMU has such
terrifying power, sufficient, so they say, to frighten the ship
owners into granting theirdemands "without long and bitter
strikes," then may we venture to ask: WHY DID THE
NMU FINK ON THE REST OF THE SEAMEN BY SIGN
ING WITHOUT GETTING THE TEN CENTS PER HOUR
INCREASE IN OVERTIME? And if "the SIU does not have
ihe power," we leave it to Mr. Lawrenson to explain to his
membership why the SIU did get the ten dollars per month
FL.US the ten cents per hour overtime raise!
We Wonder • • • Why
Certainly, if the shipowners, quivering in their boots at
the knowledge "that the NMU represents 80 peh cent of the
American seamen," dare not refuse to concede the NMU's
si^htest wish: WHY! In the name of all that's holy, dbesnft
DameulaGurran put the evil eye on the coastwise operators
ap^d get SOME kind 6f an increase for his membership?
Xk it because this tremendous POV^R "that the
NMU'has" is. so terrifying that once it's put to use the sea
la^n^nl^ get too much? Or is this breath'taking power
bAingi'R^d in reserve to aceomplish what Mr^ Lawrenson says,
is the "MAIN 'JOB" of the NMU . . . "to crush and sweep
oijt the sxu:";
But it "the NMU represents 80 per cent of the American
s^apibn," and thb West Coast Unions represent the. balance;
theii the SlU,'like prbhibitibh beer, must represent about one
half of one per cent. How flattering to us, then, is this stor
ing tip. Ihe tferaendohs reservoir of NMU power for our
^special benefit I
.or (Continued on last column)
Winis hcrbase
S.S. Plow City
Dear Sir and Brothers:
On Thursday, June 13th,Jn Gab
veston, a joint meeting of all men
on this ship, together with the
crew of the Frances Salmon of
N. O., was ealfecl to order at
12:30 P.M. After the chairman
and secretary were elected, the
question was put. to a vote as to
vyhether we should sail before
getting the $10 per month in
crease in wages and the ten cents
increase in overtime. Both crews
voted unanimously in favor of the
wage and overtime increase.
Not Striking
The captain was informed by
the Deck delegate that the
men were not striking and
• were not sitting the ship down,
but inasmuch as they were losing
money by remaining aboard when
they could ship out on other SIU
ships at $10 more per month plus
80 cents per hour overtlnie, they
were quitting the ship.
Demands Notice
The captain informed the dele
gate that he would demand his
24 hours "notice. He also asked
the. deck delegate if the deck de
partment were turning to fot the
remainder of the day and the fol
lowing morning. When told that
the sailors were going to work
until the following nosn, he said
he would get in touch with Ms
owners. A telegram was then
sent to Agent Collins in Philadel
pjiia, informing hjm of the action
and of the cfews' demand for the
increase.
Win Demands—
Naturally, we did not know
what the reaction of Age.'.t Col
lins or the owners was in PhlJa
delphia, but we do know that at
4:00 PM, the same afternoon,
the deck delegate, received a tele
gram from Collins advising us
that "the Range Line agrees to
Increase in wages and overtime,
effective June 15 for all three
shipp (Plow City, Suwied and
Marsadok)." This telegram was
shown to the captain who re
ceived a similar wire from his
owners at approximately the
same time.
On Botk Ships!
The telegram notifying us of
the increase in wiages and over
time was carried over ito the SS
Frances Salman and was shown
to all delegates and to the cap
tain who stated that he, too,
wotild comply with the increased
ecale, subject to advice from his
owners. This ship (Frances Sal: ALL in the AFL ... so are all of the Teamsters. Union split
All Members
Attend Your Union
Meeting
WHEN SHIP IS IN
PORT!
Important Matters
Coming Up
EVERY WEEK!
"Dear Mr. Weisberger:
"I have your memorandum of
the 19th instant citing certain
objections to the marine war
risk insurance bill (H.R. 6572).
These objections are identical
with those brought to the atten
tion of the committee in the
telegram of Mr. Harry Lunde
berg.
"All of these objections are
taken care of in a proposed
amendment to the bill in the
nature of a substitute which
has been agreed upon by the
committee. This substitute,
amendment was further amende
ed in the Floor today by Mr.
Bradley of' Michigan and was
passed by the House. I enclose
a copy of the substitute amend
ment as amended by Mr. Brad
ley and passed." .
Yours very sincerely,
(signed): S. O. Bland,
Chairman
Bill Amended
The bill as amended carries a
clause which staates: "Nothing
this subtitle (bill) shall be
deemed to affect the rights of
seamen under any provision of
existing law." With the amend
.ments to the bill eliminating the
objectionable clauses and' safe
guarding the rights already es
tablished by lay for the protec
tion of seamen, the bill was
adopted by the House of Repre
sentatives and vyill probably lie
come law.
Power VS. Propaganda
(Continued from first column)
Curran Gets BackingV'
Aiiodiov reason why the shlpoivners so greatly fe<ar the
"power" of Curran and Co., according to' the statement, i&
because the "NMU is backed by the West Coast Unions."(!)
Now that is a gem! One only need recall this "backing"
when Curran stuck his snout into the Shepard Line and,tried
to take these ships away from the SUP and MFOW. Curran
and Co. really got a taste of power then that cured them
from trying it again. Curran waS licked in the Shepard Line
beef because the power was on the side of the SUP and its
allies, the AFL Longshoremen and AFL Teamsters.
Where Real Power Lies!
Power is comp.oinided of the strength of the particular
organization PLUS tlie economic strength of its allies.
Judged by this standard, it is no wonder that the NMU has
been reduced to littlo more than an iinpotent propaagnda
agency. The longshoremen on the East Cbast and Gulf are
man) had no agreement with the
SIU at the time, but a, telegram
was received from our N.O. office
that favorable negotiations were
uoder way and to sail the ship.
' 'Unorgftfljz^d" Victory;
This brought the. game to a
close with the following sum
mary. One demand; two increas
es; njo errorsi • Time of ga,me: 3
hours.' SIU pitching—Shipown
ers catching.
The crew of thig ship wish to,
express; their appreciation of the
fine work dofie by Agents Arm
strong, Parker and Gollins. •
We b«Reve 'that We apSThe flfst
qf the smaller coastwise 'Hnes
ships to make tiie grade but not
the last, we hope.' And just; think,
the above increases were gotten
by one pf the sqcaPed "unor
ganized ships^' of the SIU I (Now
you telt one!);
Well, here's where we came in.
Steady as she goes!
R. R.' Hyer, No. 2100.
Deck Delegate.
ting raids by the NMU have compelled the longshoremen
and teamsters to come out AGAINST the NMU. The SIU,^
despite its smaller memhej."ship, has demonstrated its superior
economic power by .estahlishiug higher wage and overtime
levels as well as better working conditions for its member
ship. In the filial analysis, the only real judgment of a
union's power is the standard of wages and working cqridi
tipnsit established for its membership. Judged by tfiat sto,nd
ard, the REAL power is weighted on the side of the SIU ahd
its allies.
A Les&ott Well Learned!
What CurranLawrenson and Co. do is to ennfuse the
question of economic power with the "poiver of propagan
da." The NMU has lived for these past few years on the
power of its propaganda^—and miserable lying propaganda it
is at tiiat. How "much longer their membership will remain
passive, being; fed propaganda instead of pork chops'is a
matter of conjecture, (jnc thing is certain, most of the men
in the^IU have learned that a pound' of pork chbps' is more •
satisfying' than tons of NMU propaganda and no POWER oil '
earth can teach them'different. i
•
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' '
, Saturday, June 29, 1940
• t •
THE SEAFARERS' LOG
ii
What's Doing —
MOBILE BALTIMORE
. TEXAS CITY
Texas City, Texas
June 16, 1940
Editor, Seafarers Log:
I believe that all hands "will
agree that the ten dollar
monthly wage increase, plus
the tencent per hour increase
in overtime on the offshore
ships, "was a direct aftermath
of the action taken on the
coast by the members and of
ficialfe of the Sailors Union of
the Pacific, tlie paaent organ
ization of the Seafarers Inter
national Union of North
America. Also, all members of
the NMU, "who are at all hon
est, will grant that they, too,
received the ten bucks a
month on the dccp"w'ater
ships because the SUP set the
standard.
* » •
Of course, Curra.n and Co., the
"and Co." including the ruling
commissar ciique, ^o not admit
this. But the honest i,iMU rank
"and fiie member w.iil also be the
first to admit that were it not for
the seilout of Curran and Co.,
they would have gotten the ten
cents per hour increase in over
time. Now the question that
arises for discussion . is why the
hell did Curran ("the great lead
er") contend that it would hurt
tl)^ poor but honest shipowners
^o, have to pay, the raise on the
coastwise ships?
,ii i<< «
That upstart organization, the
S.I.U., compQ.sed of the members
of the Gulf and Atlantic coast,
who had too much foresight to
fall for the line of the conimy
leadership of the NMU, have
gone and messed up the bed of
roses again! Yes sir! They have
once again turned the lay of
things so that the thorns on the
rpses are up where they're stick
ing right into the seat of Curran's
pants. First "Waterman, out' o.f
Mobile (which, by the by, is still
in the throes of a "reorgan
ization" drive by the NMU . .. .
guess they wapt the crews to give
the raise back to the company!)
granted the raise to the crews on
their coastwise ships. Now the
Range Uines. have coroe through
with the raise . . . the Canadian
Qulf Lines, have also agreed to
the raise in base pay and over
time to conform with the off
shore rate.
Great oaKs from little acorns
grow! First Waterman, six to
eight shipa; then the Wm. C.At
wjfitsr for that Fail Rbxcr Na"yiga'
tio.p Co., two or three ships;
R^nge Line, thr^e ships; C ^ G
with two ships; ail paying.the. In
crease of ten dollars per month
ap^ ten cents per hour in over
tifpe. Twelve to fifteen ships on
strictly coastal runs, under con
tract to the SlU, have been com
pelled to come through with the
raise, In spite of the finky policy
of th6 NMU' who stated that
there "Would be no increases In
any coastwise" shipsi »'*• >»
If and when the NMU tajce^ ak;
tlqii similar to the M:pO"V^ who
want fpy purge the commies In;
stead o| letting the commies do
tl(e purging, then there would be
hope" for the American seamen.
Speaking of the American sea
men.". . . During the last few
yeard, they have carried forward
{he name handed down from the
Clipper ships, as the best crews
in t'he world. During the present
situation in the world, they have
gone on about their work as al
ways. The rescues of the past
few years show a big percentage
of American ships doing the dea
cuing. In short, the ciews of
these ships are maintaining and
building trade routes for the
benefit' of the nation under con
ditions that in some cases are at
a level with those of the eight
eenth century — obsolete ships,
laws, etc. Add to all this, the
present "war hysteria about fifth
columns and you will see that by
clearing our ranks of the para
sites, we will go a long way to
ward reestablishing our right
ful place in society.
* <<<
We can't do this by sacri
ficing any hard "w^oii ga,ins, nor
by allowing the shipowners to
reestablish the finkhall, but
by every forward step we
make to advance the interests
of the men that sail the ships.
* « *
The Houston hall has been
closed as we don't want to carry
on in the old stjie of "spend it
all boys; the more on the pie, the
more to vote right." Brother
Parker, who was in Houston, did
a first class job there and will be
missed by a lot of the members
who carried good, bad and indif
ferent beefs to him and had them
air taken care of. He will be on
a bigger and tougher job in a
very short time, so when he
start's his new job it will be up
to all hands to turn to and help
out.
I): « *
This leaves the Texas City hall
the only one west of New Or
leans, 60 let's be seeing you boys.
If a real emergency comes up in
Houston, call Texas City 722, but
i fthe beef is that someone don't
comb his hair right, take it to the
neext port.
Steady as she goes.
A. W. Armstrong.
Texas City,, Texas
June 22, 1940
Editor, Seafovers' Log\
This has been one of those
weeks that you read about,_,but
seldom see! The only ship that
has been in was. a Luckenbach
scow into Houston. She must
have been O.K. as.there was no
cqil frpm her. The policy in this
district now is if there is a beef
on some rust bucket in Houston,
then we, will cover, it from here.
But . . . there, is no need to drive
to Hoqston.to. make.a ship that
thalj'has, just left another port
where the patrolmen were aboard..
MEMBERS PLEASE JAKE NO
TICE OF THIS!
* * «
"We have a few men on the
beach here at this time, and L be
lieve tfiat we .can. keep the turn
over fairly fast. If,, the. past few
weeks are any indication,, then
we shall b.e able to rock along,
very nicely. The .scarce, thing
'around here is. that breed that is
eqmmonly kno'^^u as AR's. Yester
day, a young lad came into the
hall claiming that he had enough
time in to get his AB. ticket. I
fold him to get his papers .and
come hack. After he left, one of
our members passed him on . the.
atreet and sawirpf all, things—a
Cqpeland.book! Yep, my face is
Btill.red!
Stran"^ things that happen at
night. After we had received the
ten bucks a month and ten cents
an hour overtime increase on the
coastal Range Lines, Seatrain,
etc., the Pileit came out with a
heading: "Coastwise Wage Par
leys Tentatively Set for June 18."
I wonder when the members of
the iNMU will open their eyes and
see just what organization is RE
ALLY getting the wages and con
ditions. The SlU publishes the
GAINS being made and not the
pious wishes and hopes of the
tubthumpers.
• « «
There has been some talk
around about the old tanker
Olympic, which is laid up in
Houston on the mud bank, com
ing out. I called the Master of the
ship the other day, and he told
me this scow Was sold to a sub
sidiary of the PanAmericau, so
that takes care of that crate as
far as we are concerned.
* « *
Tlie Seatrain New Orleans is
running a few days late and
won't be in until Tuesday instead
of theregular Sunday arrival. The
Bull Line's Margaret is due the
next week, not to mention the
Houston Navy, the Francis Sal
monl
« « *
i note the Honor Roll in the
LOG Is rather weak. How come,
boys? This is the only medium of
expression we have. Get behind
it! Also, It seems that the mem
bers as yet have not started writ
ing to their paper. All ypu bud
ding authors should . swamp the
Editor with material.
• • *
Steady as she goes! ... and
let's continue printing gains made
and save the wishful hoping for
the Pileit!
A. W. Armstrong.
ISORFOLK
Norfolk, Va.
June 22, 1940
Shipping has been very good in
all. departmeiifs lately ... we are
into the offi(;e after being dis
PLOW CITY was in port for a
short stay. The patrolman went
aboard and found, everything in
order. The ship's delegates were
functioning very efliciently with
a 100 per cent militant crew
aboard.
* * *
The S.S. SUNDANCE came into
port from Chile with quite
few beefs. The patrolman went
into conference with the Marine
Superintendent apd settled all
beefs to the satisfaction oT the
crew. Two colored messmen had
their seamen's papers taken away
froni them by the commissionpr,
but they "vyere returned after an
inve'stigalion.
The ship is bound for Lisbon,
Portugal, and the ci=ew asked. for
a bonus. "We got a rider , for ?50
a month bonus, $5,000 life insur
ance, $150 for loss of clothing,
and In., case of internment, pay
goes on.until ci;ew gets back to
t'he 'States.
Steady as. she goes!
L. Paradeau.
June 18, 1940
Editor, Seafarers' Log:
The past issue of the 'LOG' was
received in this port with a great
deal of satisfaction and hopes for
the continuance of its publication.
We have instructed the ships'
delegates on how to gather dona
tions for the LOG in their respec
tive departments, and I think the
membership will respond pretty
good.
* « «
Waterman S.S. Co. has just
purchased five ships through the
Maritime Commission and has
agreed to replace them with new
ly built ships in two years. It is
rumored that they will bring t'he
ships here to undergo necessary
repairs, and they will in all prob
ability crew up here. It will be
some time before they are ready
to crew up though.
« « «
An incident occurred here a
few days ago on the S.S. Kofresl.
There was a messboy on the ship,
and he was one of the NMU men
who the NLRB had ordered Wa
terman to reinstate on the ship.
He had an old NMU book and the
morning the ship got in here,
comrat Drury of the NMU
brought this man a new book.
This boy in turn gave the book
to the Agent and applied for
membership in the SJU,
* » *
A mass meeting of all organ
ized labor under the auspices of
the Mobile Central Trades Coun
cil working in conjunction with
the Building Trades and Metal
Trades Councils will be held on
t)\e past side of Bienville Square
on the night of June 20. This
meeting will be similar to the one
held in Pensacola, Florida, a
couple of weeks ago and a very
large attendance is expected as
this town is really getting union
conscious. "Various International
representatives in thq AFL will
he heard on this occasion, as well
as some of our local labor
leaders.
Robert A. Matthews.
\ M RORTA N;r !
. Members must be in good
standing in order to be ^ji
glblq.iqir ^i>y from
the organization. < See that
you keep paid up! Don't
wait until the last minute!
JACKSONVILLE
Jacksonville, Fla.
June 17, 1940 "
Well, it looks like some so
called members think that they
can isolate themselvees by com
ing to the Port of Jacksonville,
where they think nobody will rec
ognize them., A colored c,OPk vyho
has been registered on the
list lost hi? papers, several, days
ago, while he was under the in
fluence" of liquor. Another mem.
ber, whose name I ,need not men
tion, found them. On handing his
papers over, something slipped
out, which to our surprise, hap
pened to be a discharge from the
Maritime Commission School at
Hoffman Island,,
• • *
This man entered the school in
November 1939 and was dis
charged on February 13, 1940. .H§
claims he is going to New York
to get this st'raiglitcncd out, but
I doubt it. I picked up his book,
whicfi was issued at Baltimore,
pn Japuary ,27, 1939, by. W. Mc
Kay. i also picked up his AFLSU
book. This man's name is George
Shyndle, Book No. 4046. As I
can't hpld p, regular meeting, am
going tp hold a, special meeting
and have the membership decide
pn what action to take^and I
know, .what' that will be. I would
like, to have this published in the
"Seafarers' Log," so that the
membership as a whole can be in
formed abnut this
* « «
^hippin^ is rather slow at pre>
ent as there are pn|y a few Bull
Line ships coming in. There are
17 membprs ^registered pn the
three shipping lists, as they have
Neim
And Views
BALTIMORE, Md., June 21,
1940.—"With no new ships to crew;
up, shipping slacked off somewhat;
during the past week. The dis
patcher's report shows 53 shipped,
51 registered with a total reglstra<
tion of 172 in all three depart
ments. Ocean Dominion Line
• should have another of the old
timers from the boneyard ready,
for her crew about three weeks
from now, but it is doubtful if the
DELORLEANS, second of the
Mississippi Line's new passenger
ships, will be out before the mid
dle of August, Maryland. Drydock
submitted lowest bids for recon
difToning of the WAUKEGAN,
WEST HONAKER, DEER
LODGE, WEST CELERON, and
WEST CORUM, meaning that
these ships will be crewed up in
this port when they are ready,
Will Require Time
However, that will be some
time yet, since the ships are in
poor condition and will require
extensive repairs and alterations,
particulariy to the crew's quar
ters. These quarters were good
enough for the NMU but not for
the SiU, and they will be fixed
up to SiU standards. Bethlehem
Steel in New York will recondr
tion the VINCENT. Recondition
ing bids for the SILETZ, WEST
CHESWALD, MOUNT EVANS,
and WEST SEGOVIA are still
open. Five other MO ships recent
ly bought "by Waterman are laid
up in the Gulf and will be crewed
up in Mobile or New Orleans.
Ship Sales Continue!
Ship sales to foreign govern
ments continue witli the latest
victims being: the WEST KED
RON, AMERICANORIOLE,
WEST HARSHAW, WEST QUE
CHEE, WEST COBALT, WEST
ERN QUEEN, HIRONDELLY,
CONDOR, ADMIRAL CHASE,
ADMIRAL DAY, ADMIRAL
LAWS, and ADMIRAL SENN to
British interests and the RED
WOOD and SAN RAFAEL to
Panama.
Further Increases
Word from Secretary John
Hawk that headquarters negotia
Hawk thatthe negotiating corhmit
tee had cracked American Range
ten' increase was good news
down here. This weakenin,aV in
the coastwise lines' opposition to
paying the offshore scale probab
ly means that Bull, Savannah et
al, will soon fall into line. NMU
will have a tough time explain
ing this away to their member
ship, .especJally in ClydeMailory
and Morgan, .yyhere the commis
sars after a feeble attempt to get
the increase gave It up, with thq
explanation that the poor coast
wise lines were not making any
money, and It was not right, to,
ask them to increase crew's
wages." Bull Line's MARY sched
uled for a South American char
ter, gets tho upped scale, and the.
usual bonus. The CARPL'/N oli.j
the same line also gets the In
crease due to a stopover in Cuba
for .sugar. . ,
Clarifications Needed '
The , rival , oi? "Waterpifgitrq^
Ai^EA" CITY, DESO.TQ, and
WESr" MADAKBT.. in this port
during the week with , the tu?ual'"
heavy >eef about overtime.^ fon*
carpenter work has <:aused .thai,
btvnch to request Agent Biggft M* ,
the Gulf tq get, clarifications frpm,
the company oq that type ot
(Continued on pqge 4J ,, r
come in from various ports.
That's ail for this 'Wek!
Steady as she goes!
Fred Lauritano.
• "• 'I
W
• . V
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THE SEAFARERS' LOG Saturday, June 29, 1940
' .
COPY OF:
Agreements Signed W^th
Coastwise Lines for
.t:
$10 a Month PLUS 10c an Hour Overtime
Seatrain Agreement
' The Seafarers International Union of North Ameriea
and Seatrain Lines, Inc., have agreed to certain emer
gency increases in wages and overtime rates, which are
stated here:
The basic wages set forth in said agreement of April
5, 1939, for ships in the coastwise and otfshore trades
shall continue in full force and effect, but in addition
thereto there shall be paid to all' the classifications of
employees employed on such vessels an emergency war
time increase of $10.00 per month.
The regular overtime rate of pay set forth in the
agreement applicable on all vessels engaged in the coast
wise and offshore trades shall continue m full force and
effect, but in addition theretn, there shall be an emer
gency war time increase in the regular overtime rate of
pay on such vessels of ten cents per hour.
The foregoing emergency wage provisions shall lie
come effective retroactive to May 1, 1940. It is under
stood, however, that the $2.50 increase which is already
in effect shall be part of the total $10.00 emergency in
crease granted hereunder.
This emergency increase in wages and ovei'time, spe
cified herein, shall be subject i,o review semiannually
at the request of either party.
IN WITNESS THEEEOF, the parties hereto have
executed this agreement this 19th day of June, 1940.
SEATRAIN LINES, Inc.
SEAFARERS INTERNATIOANL UNION
OF NORTH AMERICA
Range Line Agreement
Between AMERICAN RANGE LINES, Inc., and
SEAFARERS INTERNATIONAL UNION OF AMER
ICA, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor,
dated March 31, 1940.
It is hereby understood and agreed that effective
June 15, 1940, the wages of the unlicensed persoimel
shall be increased in each case Ten Dollars ($10.00) per
month; and furthermore, the overtime rate shall be in
creased Ten Cents (10c) per hour in each case.
These increases shall be effective until the expira
tion date of the contract, viz; September 30, 1940.
AMERICAN RANGE LINES, Inc.
SEAFARERS INTERNATIONAL UNION
OF NORTH AMERICA
Honor Roll
S.S. CATAHOULA $14150
S.S. MARGARET 3.69
S.S. CARRABULLA 13.10
Hmil Harm • 1.00
Rhodes Gubish 1,00
Eddie McKeetry 1.00
as. MAJOR WHEELER 6.50 $40.79
Total $40.79
LYONS HITS SCHEMES
TO CURB LABOR LAWS
Thomas J. Lyons, president of
the New York State Federation
of Labor, attacked as "vicious
enemies of labor" all who urge
enspending any of the provisions
of the Fair Labor Standards Act
of J.938 and the WalshHealey
I^.blic Contracts Act for the al
leged purpose of aiding the na
tional defense program.
He denounced as "absolutely
false" statements that the nation
lacked 'sufflcient skilled labor to
rush the defense program to com
pletion.
"A survey by the New York
State Federation of Labor,"
Lyons said ni a prepared state
ment, "shows jthat. .jthere is no
shortage of skilled," semiskilled,
"or unskilled workers in the Em
pire State. Information which I
have received from the federa
tions of several other States in
all sections of the country indi
cate a similar plenitude of work
ers, skilled as well as otherwise."
Members Act
On Bull Line
Proposals!
{Continued from page 1)
Rico Line for an increase of
$5 per month, WITH NO
INCREASE IN OVER
TIME! And'these ships run
offshore! The cutrate fink
emporium seems to be doing
a flourishing business! An
other "victory" for Curran
means — another defeat for
the seamen!)
Deadlock Continues!
As the deadlock continued the
negotiators for the BTlll Line
stated that they would propose to
Llieir board of directors to grant
a flat $5 per month increase for
all ships, plus 10 cents per hour
increase in overtime, providing
our negotiating committee recom
mended this proposal to the mem
bership. It is now up to the
membership to decide what to do
about" the report of the Bull Line
negotiating committee. The crews
of three or four of the Bull Line
ships had quit because they
wanted the increase. This caused
some delay in the sailing of these
ships. This is no fault of the
union and it is difficult to force
men to continue sailing these
ships without the increase.
Marking Time I
Pending action on the proposal
of the negotiating committee, the
men are continuing to sail the
ships without causiny any delay.
MORE ABOUT:
Labor to Be Victim
Of New Attack Under
Cover of Hysteria!
(Continued from Page >i)
cording to an 'Associated Fai'm
ers' director, will "bring hell pop
ping in California before mid
summer," the magazine reports.
Labor Principal Target
The drive against "Reds"^ will
mainly be camouflage and the
reaj "hell" will be directed
against unions, the magazine's
correspondent admits. He points
out that a principal target will be
the A.F. of L. Teamsters' Union,
which is trying to organize the
entire Los Angeles area.
There will also be a campaign
for adoption at a referendum of
another antilabor law, similar to
one which was defeated two
years ago. Governor Culbert L.
Olson, "progiessive" Democrat,
will be under fire, too, for sup
posedly appoii^ting "radicals" to
state offices.
MORE ABOUT:
Coastwise Lines Grant
Increases as S.I.U
Applies Pressure
iNews
And Views
(Continued from Page 3)
work, and the matter should be
straightened out witliin a week
or so. Eastern Steamship's SAND
WICH is in poyt with no beefs to
take up, and the crew satisfied
with the ten dollar wage boast.
Cracking down on aliens has
started in this port with several
companies warning that they will
not sign on aliens who lack first
papers, etc. It seems dobutful,
however, if the Government will
be able to do mucl\ in this re
spect as it woulcl make for an
acute shortage in seamen.
Donate to LOG!
Our thanks to the crew of the
CARRABULLE and Brother R.
Gubish for their generous dona
tions towards the publishing of
the "Log." CTU cracked their
second tanker company in a
month with the signing up under
agreement of Cities. Service Oil.
Brother Lee Deutsch took over
from Brother ZImmer this week
as Black Gang patrolman. Ex
agent (the shadow) McKay's long
suffering and shuddering Jalopy
finally gave up the ghost in a
hole on the Sparrows Point road
last week, depositing the patrol
man in a pea field.
NMU Fizzles!
Twentynine customers in the
hospital this week, but all the
boys doing well. SUP shipping
has been slow but is due for a
sharp pickup. The great NMU
drive has fizzled out completely,
and the gloom. discussions along
South Broadway have begun
again. Since June 1st, 112 NMU
book members have appeared be
fore the investigating committee
here looking for membership.
SIU progress in tbe tanker field
is going ahead with two of the
bigger companies almost ready
for a NLRB vote.
Fraternally,
W. H. Eiklns, Agent.
(Continued from Page 1)
the Bridges "five year peace
plan." Panicstricken at the
tlmught that their blitzkrieg
against "phoney" Lundeberg and
the "phoney" ,SUP was going to
explode in their face, they made
"fast decisions!" They signed for
an increase of ten dollars per
month on the offshore ships,
WITHOUT THE TEN CENTS
PER HOUR INCREASE IN
OVERTIME! In other words, they
made a DEAL with the shipown
ers which saved the shipowners
many thousands of dollars at the
expense of their membership!
Fast Negotiators!
"The negotiations took only
one day," says MsKenzle, "which
were rather fast negotiations."
So fast, in fact, that the word
"negotiations" is a misnomer; It
per hour in the overtime rate,
ing face Is more important to the
commissar clique in the NMU
than a raise In overtime for the
rank and file membership. The
SIU was under no such compul
sion and proceeding at a trifle
slower pace succeeded in NEGO
TIATING an Increase of both ten
dollars per month plus ten cents
per houh in the overtime rate.
Negotiations which were bol
stered up by ACTION on the
part of the crews.
There's a Difference
The same thing is now occur
ing with the coastwise operators.
The SIU is taking all the heat
fighting for increases on ships in
the coastwise trade vrhile Curran
and Co. sit hack waiting to play
the role of scaveuger again. "We
can't get the $10 increases,"
whines Curran. "We CAN get
them, and what'e more, we ARE
getting them," says the SIU!
Meanwhile, our greatest obstacle
has been the response of the ship
owners, who say: "We can't give
the SIU an increase because our
competitors who have agreements
with the NMU are not required
to grant a similar ! increase!"
However, we refuse to meekly ac
cept substandard conditions just
because the NMU does.
the
we
is to crush and sweep out
SIU," says Lawrenson. "If
are successful in establishing the
NMU as the only union oh the
Atlantic and Gulf and Great
Lakes, the securing of the $10
w'age Increase in all companies,
as well as the offshore compan«
ies, is not going to be a difficult
problem." If the "MAIN JOB" of
the NMU is to "crush and sweep
out the SIU," then we shouldn't
be too harsh on the stooges for
not concerning themselves with
the secondary job of gaining
wage increases and conditions for
the seamen. All the seamen have
to do is to patiently await the
time when, "we (Lawrenson, Cur
ran & Co.) are successful in es
tablishing the NMU as the only'
union on the Atlantic, Gulf and
Great Lakes." What's a few hun
dred years among friends?
Bad Memory!
OUR MAIN JOB is to build the
SIU into a union capable of win
ning higher wages and better
working conditions and job pro
tection for our membership. The
scavengers In the NMU can't pre
vent us from doing this, they can
only make our job more difficult.
The SIU will still be making pro .
gress and forging ahead success
fully completing "Our Main Job"
when such characters as Curran,
Lawrenson, McKenzie, etc., are
nothing but a bad memory.
NOTICE
"Main Job"
The top fraction wrecking
crew are good only forwrecking
unions, not for winning condi
tions. "The main job of the
I (NMU) Reorganizing Committee
Several members have come
into the oce after being dls,
charged from the hospital and
complained that they failed to re
ceive their hospital benefit, while
they were confined; and failed to
receive a visit from the hospital
delegate.
As there Is a large number of
patients In the hospital. It Is well
nigh Impossible to contact those
of our members who fall to in
form the office or hospital dele
gate of their presence In the hos
pital. Get In touch with the office
or ask to see our delegate when
.you are confined in the hospital.
Only in that way can we be made
aware of the members who are
In the hospital entitled to receive>
benefits.
i' '*V'
.a,
fv
A
In this attack, the "Associated
Farmers" will have the assis
tance of the newlyformed "Mer
chants and Manufacturers' Asso
ciation of Southern California,"
which has !:aen set up as a "co
ordinating agency" for all groups
seeking to establish the open
shop in and around Los Angeles.
Labor Ready for Attack
It is to replace such outfits as
"Southern Californians" and "The
Neutral Thousands," which were
exposed and discredited in inves
tigations by the La Follette Civil
Liberties Committee and the Na
tional Labor Relations Board.
• However, West Coast union
chiefs are confident they will be
able to resist the attack. In the
past few years, they have been
subject to one antilabor offensive
after another, but have emerged
stronger than before.
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The Seafarers^ Log
Seafarers' International Union of North America
OfficialOrgan of the Atlantic^ Gulf and Great Lakes Seamen
^ VOL. II NEW YORK, N. Y., SATURDAY, JUNE 29, 1940 446 No. 5
SlU WINS WAGE AND OVERTIME
RAISE DESPITE NMD SELLOUT
Labor to Be Victim
Of New Attack Under
Cover of Hysteria!
"Associated Farmers" of California Plan Drive
On Labor —Will Be Camouflaged as
War on "Subversive Activities
Leadership of the "Associated Farmers," antilabor fron
for California industrialists, has been overhauled by elements
pledged to fight unions with "iron fist" policies.
"Moderates" in the organization—that is, those who fa
vored "softpedaling" the drive against labor — have been
boosted out and "direct actionists" have been put in their
places.
This housecleaning and its purposes are described iu the
recent issue of "Business Week," a magazine for employers
Its Los Angeles correspondent tells the whole story of the
dramatic "coup."
Among those ousted, says the magazine, was Secretarj
Harold B. Pomeroy, who had been trying to convert the "As
sociated Farmers" to the idea that better relations with the
unions would be a good thing.
New Leaders Tough
The new regime includes Colo
nel Walter E. Garrison, who had
been one of the early president's
of the organization and a fore
most advocate of ruthless tactics
against unions; the present head,
John Watson, who clashed with
Pomeroy and Phil Bancroft,
wealthy ,landowner and banker
who ran for U. S. Senator on the
"Associated G.O.P. ticket with
Farmers" backing.
They are g.oing to wage their
new war against unions under
cover of the hysteria about "fifth
columns" and "subversive activi
ties," the account in "Business
Week" reveals. /
"Pincipal feature is to be an
anti'Red' campaign which, ac
(Continued on Page 4)
War Risk insurance
Bill Amended!
OBJECTIONS BY SW SUP ELIMNATE
SUB STANDARD LIABILITY BILL
BILL AS AMENDED
After being pigcondioled for about a year, the War Risk
Insurance Bill was brought before the Hou.se Committee on
Merchant Marine and Fisheries for final action before presen
tation to Congress. As originally drawn, the Bill established
extremely low liability for death and permanent injury to
seamen. The Bill set a low figure of $2,000 in the event of
death, and total disability, such as the loss of an arm or leg,
was based on the low death rate. Further, the Bill tended to
nullifiy the right) of seamen to sue for personal damages in
ease of injury:
Oppose Bill!
The SIU and SUP opposed
the bill in'its original form,
and when it was announced
that action was to be . taken
by the Committee on the bill,
Harry Lundeberg desighated
Morris W e i s b e r g e r, SUP
Ageiit at the Port of New
York, to appear on behalf of
the SIUSUP. In stating our
objections to the bill, Brother
Weisberger submitted a mem
orandum setting forth the fol
lowing contentions:
1. The draft of the bill pro
vides: Ridiculously low limits
on the lives of seamen,
2. The schedules for disability
are completely unsatisfactory.
3. There is no protection in the
(Continued from page 2X
NEWS FROM
Headquarters
Ballots Notice
Everyone Vote!
NEW YORK
Balloting on the main proposals
recommended by the Atlanta
Agents Conference will begin on
or about July 1s't at ai| branches
and headquarters and will con
tinue for four consecutive regu
lar membership meetings. Ballots
are prepared for a membership
referendum on the following ques
tions:
1. Amalgation of the Atlantic
and Guif Districts into one unified
setup; and
2. Uniform shipping rules for
the AtlanticGulf Districtt.
B^iallots Ready!
Ballots on the Amalgamation
question will be in the .form of
the resolution on amalgamation
as adopted by the Agents confer
ence. The resolution provides for
a centralized headquarters at
Washington, B.C. which would
also function as the legislative
office of the SIU. Many dual
functions and much of the fric
tion that now exists between the
Atlantic and Gulf districts would
be eliminated by amalgamating
the two districts.
Amalgamation of the Atlantic
and Gulf into one unified organ
ization will create a firmer basis
for further expansion as well as
to strengthen our position on
ships now under contract. The
resolution was adopted by mem
bership meetings at headquarters
and in the branches, and now
final action by referendum vote
before putting it into practice.
Ballots Ready!
Another ballot, will be on the
proposed revised shipping rules
as recommended by the Agents
conference. The object is to get
a set of more or less uniform
shipping rules for the Atlantic
and Gulf. There will be around
35 rules covering general ship
ping conditions and a few relat
ing to special cases. Each rule
will be voted on individually and
majority will decide which
ruled are to be adopted and which
rejected.
Everyone Vote!
IT IS IMPORTANT THAT
EVERY MEMBER VOTES ON
THESE BALLOTS! EXERCISE
YOUR RIGHT TO DECIDE
THESE IMPORTANT QUES
TIONS BY THE DEMOCRATIC
METHOD PROVIDED BY THE
CO.NSTITUTION OF THE OR
GANIZATION!
Members Act
On Bull Line
Proposals!
G. B. CARNEY—former
ly w.itertendcr on the S.S.
MARY of the Bull Line
get in touch with Scotty
Thompson, Assistant Secre
tary, as soon aa you can.
Coastwise Lines Grant
Increase As S.I.U.
Applies Pressure
CurrarPs Scavengers Undermine Wage ^
Standards and Working Conditions j
An agreement wa.s signed last week with the SeatraiB
Line, Inc., providing for a wage increase of ten dollars per
month phis an increase in the overtime rate of ten cents per
hour for all departments. Previously, the SIU had .signed
supplementary agreements for similar inereases with the fob
lowing coastwise operators: Range Lines, Canadian and GuH
Lines, Fall River Navigation Co., Waterman (for their coasts
wise ships). Through consistent pressure, the coastwise op
erators are gradually falling into line with the increased
wage and overtime rates established on tlie offshore and in*
tercoastal ships under control of the Seafarers InternationaL
^ Curran Wilts i
What has made our fight
for the higher wage and over*
time rates on the Coastwise
Lines extremely difficult is the
stand taken by the officialdom;
of the NMU that it was im
possible to get the increase
from the coastwise operators.
Curran speaking at an NMUl
membership meeting in Nev^
York on May 9th, in reference
to the coa.stwise lines, stated^
. . we can't get the $10 in
eerase.s . . . the companies are
going to turn us down flat.'*
These "great leaders" have
evolved a brilliant strategy te
cover their bankruptcy! The
teehiiiquo is to strut around
posing as "leaders" while
ACTING like scavenger.? This
is how it works: t
Fast Decisions!
H. McKenzie, reporting for the
NMU negotiating committee, stat
ed to the membership (Minutea
NMU membership meeting, May
9): "Well, we heard the SUP had
negotiated a $10 wage increase
on the demands of the NMU for
an increased war bonus, ws
raised the question for an lrt«
crease in wages for all the off
shore ships. The negotiations
took only one day, which were
rather fast negotiations. Of
course, we made fast decisions."
Membership Loses
McKenzie here confesses that
the NMU were taken completely
by surprise at the news that the
SUP had won an increase and ta
citly admits that prior fo receiv
ing the news, they had no inten
tion of raising the question of an
increase. In fact, they were tied
up with a two year agieemenfl
which they had previously ac
claimed as fhe NMU version of
(Continued on page 4)
A deadlock has been reach
ed between the SIU negotiat
ing committee and the Bull
Line officials over the union's
demand for an increase of ten
dollars per month plus ten
cents per hour in overtime, It
is the contention of the com
pany that it operates in the
coastwise trade in competition
with the Morgan Line, the
Porto Rico Line and other
lines under agreement with
the NMU. The fact that the
NMU is playing dead is one of
the worst obstacles confront
ing, our negotiating eommit
lee. Curran's fink agency is
like an anelior around our
necks.
Proposal Rejected!
Our committee made It plaifi
that we were not going to accept
substandard conditions just be
cause the iNMU is selling its
membership down the river. After
much arguing the company sub
mitted a proposal for a $2.50 per
month increase for ships running
strictly coastwise ,and $5.00 per
month for ships running to Porto
Rico—without the overtime in
crease. This was rejected by the
SIU committee.
{While the SIU nesotiathig
committee was meeting with
the Bull Line offiicals they
were informed that word had
been received that the NMU
had signed with the Porto
(Continued on page 4)
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THE SEAFARERS* LOG
ft:
Saturday, June 29, 1940]
ft.
i'C:
1^' •
I't':
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i • '• •
:
Publtshed by the
Seafarers^ International Union
of North Americd,
0 il//i7toted with the American Federation of Le^or.
HARRY LUNDEBERG, Acting President
110 Market Street, Room 402, San Francisco, Calif.
Atlantic District
HEADQUARTERS'
New York (Phone: BOwling Green 93437) 2 Stone Street
BRANCHES
Boston ...330 Atlantic Avenue
Providence 465 So. Main Street
PMladelBhia 6 Nortli Cth Street
Baltimore 14 North Gay Street
Norfolk , 60 Commercial Place
San Juan, Puerto Rico 8 Covadonga Street
Gulf District
HIADQUARTERS
New Orleans 309 Chartres Street
BRANCHES
Savannah 218 East Bay Street
Jacksonyllle >.,.... 136 Bay Street
Tampa 206 Franklin Street
Mobile 55 So. Conception Street
Texas City 105 4th Street
Great. Lakes District
HEADQUARTERS
Detroit .......1038 Third Street
AI>DRES8 ALL CORRESPONDENCE CONCERNING THIS
PUBLICATION TO:
. "THE SEAFARERS' LOG"
P. O. Box 522, Church St. Annex, New York, N. Y. ^
Editor: Tom Kerry—Former Editor of "West Coast Firemen"
Editorial
Power vs. Propaganda
W err" R i sk I nswa nee
Biir Amended! '
{Continued from paye 1)
bill for the rights given sea
' men under section 33, Ship
ping Actof 1920.
(Under this section the seammi
are given the right to sue for in
jury.)
4. Provisions vyhich are already
a matter of, agreement under
collective bargaining con.
tracts receive no protection
vwhatewer=
(This means that ice have al
ready negotiated tear risk insur
ance liability directly with the
shipowners amounting to much
more than that provided in the
bill.)
Objections Filed
In reply to the objections filed
by Brother Weisberger, the fol
lowing letter was received from
S. 0. Bland, chairman of the
Committee on Merchant Marine
and Fisheries:
In one of the more recent of the numerous propaganda
sheets addressed to the members of the SIU by the socalled
"reorganization committee" of the NMU a ciuestion is raised
which warrants coMsideration by ALL seamen. It is the ques
tion of "POWER." This NMU sheet makes the following
Statement:
. . the SIU does not have the power to get for
you the wages and conditions you demand.
''THE NMU HAS THIS POWER. Witness the $10
i increase on passenger and freighter ships,~ over and
i above the regular scale. Witness the $5 raise on the
! tankerfrAND ALL SECURED WITHOUT LONG
I AND BITTER STRIKES. Why? Because the shipown
' ers know that the NMU represents 80 p6r cent of the
' American seamen, and is backed by the West Coast
Unions."
Some Pertinent Questions
Now all of this is very interesting! If the NMU has such
terrifying power, sufficient, so they say, to frighten the ship
owners into granting theirdemands "without long and bitter
strikes," then may we venture to ask: WHY DID THE
NMU FINK ON THE REST OF THE SEAMEN BY SIGN
ING WITHOUT GETTING THE TEN CENTS PER HOUR
INCREASE IN OVERTIME? And if "the SIU does not have
ihe power," we leave it to Mr. Lawrenson to explain to his
membership why the SIU did get the ten dollars per month
FL.US the ten cents per hour overtime raise!
We Wonder • • • Why
Certainly, if the shipowners, quivering in their boots at
the knowledge "that the NMU represents 80 peh cent of the
American seamen," dare not refuse to concede the NMU's
si^htest wish: WHY! In the name of all that's holy, dbesnft
DameulaGurran put the evil eye on the coastwise operators
ap^d get SOME kind 6f an increase for his membership?
Xk it because this tremendous POV^R "that the
NMU'has" is. so terrifying that once it's put to use the sea
la^n^nl^ get too much? Or is this breath'taking power
bAingi'R^d in reserve to aceomplish what Mr^ Lawrenson says,
is the "MAIN 'JOB" of the NMU . . . "to crush and sweep
oijt the sxu:";
But it "the NMU represents 80 per cent of the American
s^apibn," and thb West Coast Unions represent the. balance;
theii the SlU,'like prbhibitibh beer, must represent about one
half of one per cent. How flattering to us, then, is this stor
ing tip. Ihe tferaendohs reservoir of NMU power for our
^special benefit I
.or (Continued on last column)
Winis hcrbase
S.S. Plow City
Dear Sir and Brothers:
On Thursday, June 13th,Jn Gab
veston, a joint meeting of all men
on this ship, together with the
crew of the Frances Salmon of
N. O., was ealfecl to order at
12:30 P.M. After the chairman
and secretary were elected, the
question was put. to a vote as to
vyhether we should sail before
getting the $10 per month in
crease in wages and the ten cents
increase in overtime. Both crews
voted unanimously in favor of the
wage and overtime increase.
Not Striking
The captain was informed by
the Deck delegate that the
men were not striking and
• were not sitting the ship down,
but inasmuch as they were losing
money by remaining aboard when
they could ship out on other SIU
ships at $10 more per month plus
80 cents per hour overtlnie, they
were quitting the ship.
Demands Notice
The captain informed the dele
gate that he would demand his
24 hours "notice. He also asked
the. deck delegate if the deck de
partment were turning to fot the
remainder of the day and the fol
lowing morning. When told that
the sailors were going to work
until the following nosn, he said
he would get in touch with Ms
owners. A telegram was then
sent to Agent Collins in Philadel
pjiia, informing hjm of the action
and of the cfews' demand for the
increase.
Win Demands—
Naturally, we did not know
what the reaction of Age.'.t Col
lins or the owners was in PhlJa
delphia, but we do know that at
4:00 PM, the same afternoon,
the deck delegate, received a tele
gram from Collins advising us
that "the Range Line agrees to
Increase in wages and overtime,
effective June 15 for all three
shipp (Plow City, Suwied and
Marsadok)." This telegram was
shown to the captain who re
ceived a similar wire from his
owners at approximately the
same time.
On Botk Ships!
The telegram notifying us of
the increase in wiages and over
time was carried over ito the SS
Frances Salman and was shown
to all delegates and to the cap
tain who stated that he, too,
wotild comply with the increased
ecale, subject to advice from his
owners. This ship (Frances Sal: ALL in the AFL ... so are all of the Teamsters. Union split
All Members
Attend Your Union
Meeting
WHEN SHIP IS IN
PORT!
Important Matters
Coming Up
EVERY WEEK!
"Dear Mr. Weisberger:
"I have your memorandum of
the 19th instant citing certain
objections to the marine war
risk insurance bill (H.R. 6572).
These objections are identical
with those brought to the atten
tion of the committee in the
telegram of Mr. Harry Lunde
berg.
"All of these objections are
taken care of in a proposed
amendment to the bill in the
nature of a substitute which
has been agreed upon by the
committee. This substitute,
amendment was further amende
ed in the Floor today by Mr.
Bradley of' Michigan and was
passed by the House. I enclose
a copy of the substitute amend
ment as amended by Mr. Brad
ley and passed." .
Yours very sincerely,
(signed): S. O. Bland,
Chairman
Bill Amended
The bill as amended carries a
clause which staates: "Nothing
this subtitle (bill) shall be
deemed to affect the rights of
seamen under any provision of
existing law." With the amend
.ments to the bill eliminating the
objectionable clauses and' safe
guarding the rights already es
tablished by lay for the protec
tion of seamen, the bill was
adopted by the House of Repre
sentatives and vyill probably lie
come law.
Power VS. Propaganda
(Continued from first column)
Curran Gets BackingV'
Aiiodiov reason why the shlpoivners so greatly fe<ar the
"power" of Curran and Co., according to' the statement, i&
because the "NMU is backed by the West Coast Unions."(!)
Now that is a gem! One only need recall this "backing"
when Curran stuck his snout into the Shepard Line and,tried
to take these ships away from the SUP and MFOW. Curran
and Co. really got a taste of power then that cured them
from trying it again. Curran waS licked in the Shepard Line
beef because the power was on the side of the SUP and its
allies, the AFL Longshoremen and AFL Teamsters.
Where Real Power Lies!
Power is comp.oinided of the strength of the particular
organization PLUS tlie economic strength of its allies.
Judged by this standard, it is no wonder that the NMU has
been reduced to littlo more than an iinpotent propaagnda
agency. The longshoremen on the East Cbast and Gulf are
man) had no agreement with the
SIU at the time, but a, telegram
was received from our N.O. office
that favorable negotiations were
uoder way and to sail the ship.
' 'Unorgftfljz^d" Victory;
This brought the. game to a
close with the following sum
mary. One demand; two increas
es; njo errorsi • Time of ga,me: 3
hours.' SIU pitching—Shipown
ers catching.
The crew of thig ship wish to,
express; their appreciation of the
fine work dofie by Agents Arm
strong, Parker and Gollins. •
We b«Reve 'that We apSThe flfst
qf the smaller coastwise 'Hnes
ships to make tiie grade but not
the last, we hope.' And just; think,
the above increases were gotten
by one pf the sqcaPed "unor
ganized ships^' of the SIU I (Now
you telt one!);
Well, here's where we came in.
Steady as she goes!
R. R.' Hyer, No. 2100.
Deck Delegate.
ting raids by the NMU have compelled the longshoremen
and teamsters to come out AGAINST the NMU. The SIU,^
despite its smaller memhej."ship, has demonstrated its superior
economic power by .estahlishiug higher wage and overtime
levels as well as better working conditions for its member
ship. In the filial analysis, the only real judgment of a
union's power is the standard of wages and working cqridi
tipnsit established for its membership. Judged by tfiat sto,nd
ard, the REAL power is weighted on the side of the SIU ahd
its allies.
A Les&ott Well Learned!
What CurranLawrenson and Co. do is to ennfuse the
question of economic power with the "poiver of propagan
da." The NMU has lived for these past few years on the
power of its propaganda^—and miserable lying propaganda it
is at tiiat. How "much longer their membership will remain
passive, being; fed propaganda instead of pork chops'is a
matter of conjecture, (jnc thing is certain, most of the men
in the^IU have learned that a pound' of pork chbps' is more •
satisfying' than tons of NMU propaganda and no POWER oil '
earth can teach them'different. i
•
http://www.pdfcompressor.org/buy.html
' '
, Saturday, June 29, 1940
• t •
THE SEAFARERS' LOG
ii
What's Doing —
MOBILE BALTIMORE
. TEXAS CITY
Texas City, Texas
June 16, 1940
Editor, Seafarers Log:
I believe that all hands "will
agree that the ten dollar
monthly wage increase, plus
the tencent per hour increase
in overtime on the offshore
ships, "was a direct aftermath
of the action taken on the
coast by the members and of
ficialfe of the Sailors Union of
the Pacific, tlie paaent organ
ization of the Seafarers Inter
national Union of North
America. Also, all members of
the NMU, "who are at all hon
est, will grant that they, too,
received the ten bucks a
month on the dccp"w'ater
ships because the SUP set the
standard.
* » •
Of course, Curra.n and Co., the
"and Co." including the ruling
commissar ciique, ^o not admit
this. But the honest i,iMU rank
"and fiie member w.iil also be the
first to admit that were it not for
the seilout of Curran and Co.,
they would have gotten the ten
cents per hour increase in over
time. Now the question that
arises for discussion . is why the
hell did Curran ("the great lead
er") contend that it would hurt
tl)^ poor but honest shipowners
^o, have to pay, the raise on the
coastwise ships?
,ii i<< «
That upstart organization, the
S.I.U., compQ.sed of the members
of the Gulf and Atlantic coast,
who had too much foresight to
fall for the line of the conimy
leadership of the NMU, have
gone and messed up the bed of
roses again! Yes sir! They have
once again turned the lay of
things so that the thorns on the
rpses are up where they're stick
ing right into the seat of Curran's
pants. First "Waterman, out' o.f
Mobile (which, by the by, is still
in the throes of a "reorgan
ization" drive by the NMU . .. .
guess they wapt the crews to give
the raise back to the company!)
granted the raise to the crews on
their coastwise ships. Now the
Range Uines. have coroe through
with the raise . . . the Canadian
Qulf Lines, have also agreed to
the raise in base pay and over
time to conform with the off
shore rate.
Great oaKs from little acorns
grow! First Waterman, six to
eight shipa; then the Wm. C.At
wjfitsr for that Fail Rbxcr Na"yiga'
tio.p Co., two or three ships;
R^nge Line, thr^e ships; C ^ G
with two ships; ail paying.the. In
crease of ten dollars per month
ap^ ten cents per hour in over
tifpe. Twelve to fifteen ships on
strictly coastal runs, under con
tract to the SlU, have been com
pelled to come through with the
raise, In spite of the finky policy
of th6 NMU' who stated that
there "Would be no increases In
any coastwise" shipsi »'*• >»
If and when the NMU tajce^ ak;
tlqii similar to the M:pO"V^ who
want fpy purge the commies In;
stead o| letting the commies do
tl(e purging, then there would be
hope" for the American seamen.
Speaking of the American sea
men.". . . During the last few
yeard, they have carried forward
{he name handed down from the
Clipper ships, as the best crews
in t'he world. During the present
situation in the world, they have
gone on about their work as al
ways. The rescues of the past
few years show a big percentage
of American ships doing the dea
cuing. In short, the ciews of
these ships are maintaining and
building trade routes for the
benefit' of the nation under con
ditions that in some cases are at
a level with those of the eight
eenth century — obsolete ships,
laws, etc. Add to all this, the
present "war hysteria about fifth
columns and you will see that by
clearing our ranks of the para
sites, we will go a long way to
ward reestablishing our right
ful place in society.
* <<<
We can't do this by sacri
ficing any hard "w^oii ga,ins, nor
by allowing the shipowners to
reestablish the finkhall, but
by every forward step we
make to advance the interests
of the men that sail the ships.
* « *
The Houston hall has been
closed as we don't want to carry
on in the old stjie of "spend it
all boys; the more on the pie, the
more to vote right." Brother
Parker, who was in Houston, did
a first class job there and will be
missed by a lot of the members
who carried good, bad and indif
ferent beefs to him and had them
air taken care of. He will be on
a bigger and tougher job in a
very short time, so when he
start's his new job it will be up
to all hands to turn to and help
out.
I): « *
This leaves the Texas City hall
the only one west of New Or
leans, 60 let's be seeing you boys.
If a real emergency comes up in
Houston, call Texas City 722, but
i fthe beef is that someone don't
comb his hair right, take it to the
neext port.
Steady as she goes.
A. W. Armstrong.
Texas City,, Texas
June 22, 1940
Editor, Seafovers' Log\
This has been one of those
weeks that you read about,_,but
seldom see! The only ship that
has been in was. a Luckenbach
scow into Houston. She must
have been O.K. as.there was no
cqil frpm her. The policy in this
district now is if there is a beef
on some rust bucket in Houston,
then we, will cover, it from here.
But . . . there, is no need to drive
to Hoqston.to. make.a ship that
thalj'has, just left another port
where the patrolmen were aboard..
MEMBERS PLEASE JAKE NO
TICE OF THIS!
* * «
"We have a few men on the
beach here at this time, and L be
lieve tfiat we .can. keep the turn
over fairly fast. If,, the. past few
weeks are any indication,, then
we shall b.e able to rock along,
very nicely. The .scarce, thing
'around here is. that breed that is
eqmmonly kno'^^u as AR's. Yester
day, a young lad came into the
hall claiming that he had enough
time in to get his AB. ticket. I
fold him to get his papers .and
come hack. After he left, one of
our members passed him on . the.
atreet and sawirpf all, things—a
Cqpeland.book! Yep, my face is
Btill.red!
Stran"^ things that happen at
night. After we had received the
ten bucks a month and ten cents
an hour overtime increase on the
coastal Range Lines, Seatrain,
etc., the Pileit came out with a
heading: "Coastwise Wage Par
leys Tentatively Set for June 18."
I wonder when the members of
the iNMU will open their eyes and
see just what organization is RE
ALLY getting the wages and con
ditions. The SlU publishes the
GAINS being made and not the
pious wishes and hopes of the
tubthumpers.
• « «
There has been some talk
around about the old tanker
Olympic, which is laid up in
Houston on the mud bank, com
ing out. I called the Master of the
ship the other day, and he told
me this scow Was sold to a sub
sidiary of the PanAmericau, so
that takes care of that crate as
far as we are concerned.
* « *
Tlie Seatrain New Orleans is
running a few days late and
won't be in until Tuesday instead
of theregular Sunday arrival. The
Bull Line's Margaret is due the
next week, not to mention the
Houston Navy, the Francis Sal
monl
« « *
i note the Honor Roll in the
LOG Is rather weak. How come,
boys? This is the only medium of
expression we have. Get behind
it! Also, It seems that the mem
bers as yet have not started writ
ing to their paper. All ypu bud
ding authors should . swamp the
Editor with material.
• • *
Steady as she goes! ... and
let's continue printing gains made
and save the wishful hoping for
the Pileit!
A. W. Armstrong.
ISORFOLK
Norfolk, Va.
June 22, 1940
Shipping has been very good in
all. departmeiifs lately ... we are
into the offi(;e after being dis
PLOW CITY was in port for a
short stay. The patrolman went
aboard and found, everything in
order. The ship's delegates were
functioning very efliciently with
a 100 per cent militant crew
aboard.
* * *
The S.S. SUNDANCE came into
port from Chile with quite
few beefs. The patrolman went
into conference with the Marine
Superintendent apd settled all
beefs to the satisfaction oT the
crew. Two colored messmen had
their seamen's papers taken away
froni them by the commissionpr,
but they "vyere returned after an
inve'stigalion.
The ship is bound for Lisbon,
Portugal, and the ci=ew asked. for
a bonus. "We got a rider , for ?50
a month bonus, $5,000 life insur
ance, $150 for loss of clothing,
and In., case of internment, pay
goes on.until ci;ew gets back to
t'he 'States.
Steady as. she goes!
L. Paradeau.
June 18, 1940
Editor, Seafarers' Log:
The past issue of the 'LOG' was
received in this port with a great
deal of satisfaction and hopes for
the continuance of its publication.
We have instructed the ships'
delegates on how to gather dona
tions for the LOG in their respec
tive departments, and I think the
membership will respond pretty
good.
* « «
Waterman S.S. Co. has just
purchased five ships through the
Maritime Commission and has
agreed to replace them with new
ly built ships in two years. It is
rumored that they will bring t'he
ships here to undergo necessary
repairs, and they will in all prob
ability crew up here. It will be
some time before they are ready
to crew up though.
« « «
An incident occurred here a
few days ago on the S.S. Kofresl.
There was a messboy on the ship,
and he was one of the NMU men
who the NLRB had ordered Wa
terman to reinstate on the ship.
He had an old NMU book and the
morning the ship got in here,
comrat Drury of the NMU
brought this man a new book.
This boy in turn gave the book
to the Agent and applied for
membership in the SJU,
* » *
A mass meeting of all organ
ized labor under the auspices of
the Mobile Central Trades Coun
cil working in conjunction with
the Building Trades and Metal
Trades Councils will be held on
t)\e past side of Bienville Square
on the night of June 20. This
meeting will be similar to the one
held in Pensacola, Florida, a
couple of weeks ago and a very
large attendance is expected as
this town is really getting union
conscious. "Various International
representatives in thq AFL will
he heard on this occasion, as well
as some of our local labor
leaders.
Robert A. Matthews.
\ M RORTA N;r !
. Members must be in good
standing in order to be ^ji
glblq.iqir ^i>y from
the organization. < See that
you keep paid up! Don't
wait until the last minute!
JACKSONVILLE
Jacksonville, Fla.
June 17, 1940 "
Well, it looks like some so
called members think that they
can isolate themselvees by com
ing to the Port of Jacksonville,
where they think nobody will rec
ognize them., A colored c,OPk vyho
has been registered on the
list lost hi? papers, several, days
ago, while he was under the in
fluence" of liquor. Another mem.
ber, whose name I ,need not men
tion, found them. On handing his
papers over, something slipped
out, which to our surprise, hap
pened to be a discharge from the
Maritime Commission School at
Hoffman Island,,
• • *
This man entered the school in
November 1939 and was dis
charged on February 13, 1940. .H§
claims he is going to New York
to get this st'raiglitcncd out, but
I doubt it. I picked up his book,
whicfi was issued at Baltimore,
pn Japuary ,27, 1939, by. W. Mc
Kay. i also picked up his AFLSU
book. This man's name is George
Shyndle, Book No. 4046. As I
can't hpld p, regular meeting, am
going tp hold a, special meeting
and have the membership decide
pn what action to take^and I
know, .what' that will be. I would
like, to have this published in the
"Seafarers' Log," so that the
membership as a whole can be in
formed abnut this
* « «
^hippin^ is rather slow at pre>
ent as there are pn|y a few Bull
Line ships coming in. There are
17 membprs ^registered pn the
three shipping lists, as they have
Neim
And Views
BALTIMORE, Md., June 21,
1940.—"With no new ships to crew;
up, shipping slacked off somewhat;
during the past week. The dis
patcher's report shows 53 shipped,
51 registered with a total reglstra<
tion of 172 in all three depart
ments. Ocean Dominion Line
• should have another of the old
timers from the boneyard ready,
for her crew about three weeks
from now, but it is doubtful if the
DELORLEANS, second of the
Mississippi Line's new passenger
ships, will be out before the mid
dle of August, Maryland. Drydock
submitted lowest bids for recon
difToning of the WAUKEGAN,
WEST HONAKER, DEER
LODGE, WEST CELERON, and
WEST CORUM, meaning that
these ships will be crewed up in
this port when they are ready,
Will Require Time
However, that will be some
time yet, since the ships are in
poor condition and will require
extensive repairs and alterations,
particulariy to the crew's quar
ters. These quarters were good
enough for the NMU but not for
the SiU, and they will be fixed
up to SiU standards. Bethlehem
Steel in New York will recondr
tion the VINCENT. Recondition
ing bids for the SILETZ, WEST
CHESWALD, MOUNT EVANS,
and WEST SEGOVIA are still
open. Five other MO ships recent
ly bought "by Waterman are laid
up in the Gulf and will be crewed
up in Mobile or New Orleans.
Ship Sales Continue!
Ship sales to foreign govern
ments continue witli the latest
victims being: the WEST KED
RON, AMERICANORIOLE,
WEST HARSHAW, WEST QUE
CHEE, WEST COBALT, WEST
ERN QUEEN, HIRONDELLY,
CONDOR, ADMIRAL CHASE,
ADMIRAL DAY, ADMIRAL
LAWS, and ADMIRAL SENN to
British interests and the RED
WOOD and SAN RAFAEL to
Panama.
Further Increases
Word from Secretary John
Hawk that headquarters negotia
Hawk thatthe negotiating corhmit
tee had cracked American Range
ten' increase was good news
down here. This weakenin,aV in
the coastwise lines' opposition to
paying the offshore scale probab
ly means that Bull, Savannah et
al, will soon fall into line. NMU
will have a tough time explain
ing this away to their member
ship, .especJally in ClydeMailory
and Morgan, .yyhere the commis
sars after a feeble attempt to get
the increase gave It up, with thq
explanation that the poor coast
wise lines were not making any
money, and It was not right, to,
ask them to increase crew's
wages." Bull Line's MARY sched
uled for a South American char
ter, gets tho upped scale, and the.
usual bonus. The CARPL'/N oli.j
the same line also gets the In
crease due to a stopover in Cuba
for .sugar. . ,
Clarifications Needed '
The , rival , oi? "Waterpifgitrq^
Ai^EA" CITY, DESO.TQ, and
WESr" MADAKBT.. in this port
during the week with , the tu?ual'"
heavy >eef about overtime.^ fon*
carpenter work has <:aused .thai,
btvnch to request Agent Biggft M* ,
the Gulf tq get, clarifications frpm,
the company oq that type ot
(Continued on pqge 4J ,, r
come in from various ports.
That's ail for this 'Wek!
Steady as she goes!
Fred Lauritano.
• "• 'I
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THE SEAFARERS' LOG Saturday, June 29, 1940
' .
COPY OF:
Agreements Signed W^th
Coastwise Lines for
.t:
$10 a Month PLUS 10c an Hour Overtime
Seatrain Agreement
' The Seafarers International Union of North Ameriea
and Seatrain Lines, Inc., have agreed to certain emer
gency increases in wages and overtime rates, which are
stated here:
The basic wages set forth in said agreement of April
5, 1939, for ships in the coastwise and otfshore trades
shall continue in full force and effect, but in addition
thereto there shall be paid to all' the classifications of
employees employed on such vessels an emergency war
time increase of $10.00 per month.
The regular overtime rate of pay set forth in the
agreement applicable on all vessels engaged in the coast
wise and offshore trades shall continue m full force and
effect, but in addition theretn, there shall be an emer
gency war time increase in the regular overtime rate of
pay on such vessels of ten cents per hour.
The foregoing emergency wage provisions shall lie
come effective retroactive to May 1, 1940. It is under
stood, however, that the $2.50 increase which is already
in effect shall be part of the total $10.00 emergency in
crease granted hereunder.
This emergency increase in wages and ovei'time, spe
cified herein, shall be subject i,o review semiannually
at the request of either party.
IN WITNESS THEEEOF, the parties hereto have
executed this agreement this 19th day of June, 1940.
SEATRAIN LINES, Inc.
SEAFARERS INTERNATIOANL UNION
OF NORTH AMERICA
Range Line Agreement
Between AMERICAN RANGE LINES, Inc., and
SEAFARERS INTERNATIONAL UNION OF AMER
ICA, affiliated with the American Federation of Labor,
dated March 31, 1940.
It is hereby understood and agreed that effective
June 15, 1940, the wages of the unlicensed persoimel
shall be increased in each case Ten Dollars ($10.00) per
month; and furthermore, the overtime rate shall be in
creased Ten Cents (10c) per hour in each case.
These increases shall be effective until the expira
tion date of the contract, viz; September 30, 1940.
AMERICAN RANGE LINES, Inc.
SEAFARERS INTERNATIONAL UNION
OF NORTH AMERICA
Honor Roll
S.S. CATAHOULA $14150
S.S. MARGARET 3.69
S.S. CARRABULLA 13.10
Hmil Harm • 1.00
Rhodes Gubish 1,00
Eddie McKeetry 1.00
as. MAJOR WHEELER 6.50 $40.79
Total $40.79
LYONS HITS SCHEMES
TO CURB LABOR LAWS
Thomas J. Lyons, president of
the New York State Federation
of Labor, attacked as "vicious
enemies of labor" all who urge
enspending any of the provisions
of the Fair Labor Standards Act
of J.938 and the WalshHealey
I^.blic Contracts Act for the al
leged purpose of aiding the na
tional defense program.
He denounced as "absolutely
false" statements that the nation
lacked 'sufflcient skilled labor to
rush the defense program to com
pletion.
"A survey by the New York
State Federation of Labor,"
Lyons said ni a prepared state
ment, "shows jthat. .jthere is no
shortage of skilled," semiskilled,
"or unskilled workers in the Em
pire State. Information which I
have received from the federa
tions of several other States in
all sections of the country indi
cate a similar plenitude of work
ers, skilled as well as otherwise."
Members Act
On Bull Line
Proposals!
{Continued from page 1)
Rico Line for an increase of
$5 per month, WITH NO
INCREASE IN OVER
TIME! And'these ships run
offshore! The cutrate fink
emporium seems to be doing
a flourishing business! An
other "victory" for Curran
means — another defeat for
the seamen!)
Deadlock Continues!
As the deadlock continued the
negotiators for the BTlll Line
stated that they would propose to
Llieir board of directors to grant
a flat $5 per month increase for
all ships, plus 10 cents per hour
increase in overtime, providing
our negotiating committee recom
mended this proposal to the mem
bership. It is now up to the
membership to decide what to do
about" the report of the Bull Line
negotiating committee. The crews
of three or four of the Bull Line
ships had quit because they
wanted the increase. This caused
some delay in the sailing of these
ships. This is no fault of the
union and it is difficult to force
men to continue sailing these
ships without the increase.
Marking Time I
Pending action on the proposal
of the negotiating committee, the
men are continuing to sail the
ships without causiny any delay.
MORE ABOUT:
Labor to Be Victim
Of New Attack Under
Cover of Hysteria!
(Continued from Page >i)
cording to an 'Associated Fai'm
ers' director, will "bring hell pop
ping in California before mid
summer," the magazine reports.
Labor Principal Target
The drive against "Reds"^ will
mainly be camouflage and the
reaj "hell" will be directed
against unions, the magazine's
correspondent admits. He points
out that a principal target will be
the A.F. of L. Teamsters' Union,
which is trying to organize the
entire Los Angeles area.
There will also be a campaign
for adoption at a referendum of
another antilabor law, similar to
one which was defeated two
years ago. Governor Culbert L.
Olson, "progiessive" Democrat,
will be under fire, too, for sup
posedly appoii^ting "radicals" to
state offices.
MORE ABOUT:
Coastwise Lines Grant
Increases as S.I.U
Applies Pressure
iNews
And Views
(Continued from Page 3)
work, and the matter should be
straightened out witliin a week
or so. Eastern Steamship's SAND
WICH is in poyt with no beefs to
take up, and the crew satisfied
with the ten dollar wage boast.
Cracking down on aliens has
started in this port with several
companies warning that they will
not sign on aliens who lack first
papers, etc. It seems dobutful,
however, if the Government will
be able to do mucl\ in this re
spect as it woulcl make for an
acute shortage in seamen.
Donate to LOG!
Our thanks to the crew of the
CARRABULLE and Brother R.
Gubish for their generous dona
tions towards the publishing of
the "Log." CTU cracked their
second tanker company in a
month with the signing up under
agreement of Cities. Service Oil.
Brother Lee Deutsch took over
from Brother ZImmer this week
as Black Gang patrolman. Ex
agent (the shadow) McKay's long
suffering and shuddering Jalopy
finally gave up the ghost in a
hole on the Sparrows Point road
last week, depositing the patrol
man in a pea field.
NMU Fizzles!
Twentynine customers in the
hospital this week, but all the
boys doing well. SUP shipping
has been slow but is due for a
sharp pickup. The great NMU
drive has fizzled out completely,
and the gloom. discussions along
South Broadway have begun
again. Since June 1st, 112 NMU
book members have appeared be
fore the investigating committee
here looking for membership.
SIU progress in tbe tanker field
is going ahead with two of the
bigger companies almost ready
for a NLRB vote.
Fraternally,
W. H. Eiklns, Agent.
(Continued from Page 1)
the Bridges "five year peace
plan." Panicstricken at the
tlmught that their blitzkrieg
against "phoney" Lundeberg and
the "phoney" ,SUP was going to
explode in their face, they made
"fast decisions!" They signed for
an increase of ten dollars per
month on the offshore ships,
WITHOUT THE TEN CENTS
PER HOUR INCREASE IN
OVERTIME! In other words, they
made a DEAL with the shipown
ers which saved the shipowners
many thousands of dollars at the
expense of their membership!
Fast Negotiators!
"The negotiations took only
one day," says MsKenzle, "which
were rather fast negotiations."
So fast, in fact, that the word
"negotiations" is a misnomer; It
per hour in the overtime rate,
ing face Is more important to the
commissar clique in the NMU
than a raise In overtime for the
rank and file membership. The
SIU was under no such compul
sion and proceeding at a trifle
slower pace succeeded in NEGO
TIATING an Increase of both ten
dollars per month plus ten cents
per houh in the overtime rate.
Negotiations which were bol
stered up by ACTION on the
part of the crews.
There's a Difference
The same thing is now occur
ing with the coastwise operators.
The SIU is taking all the heat
fighting for increases on ships in
the coastwise trade vrhile Curran
and Co. sit hack waiting to play
the role of scaveuger again. "We
can't get the $10 increases,"
whines Curran. "We CAN get
them, and what'e more, we ARE
getting them," says the SIU!
Meanwhile, our greatest obstacle
has been the response of the ship
owners, who say: "We can't give
the SIU an increase because our
competitors who have agreements
with the NMU are not required
to grant a similar ! increase!"
However, we refuse to meekly ac
cept substandard conditions just
because the NMU does.
the
we
is to crush and sweep out
SIU," says Lawrenson. "If
are successful in establishing the
NMU as the only union oh the
Atlantic and Gulf and Great
Lakes, the securing of the $10
w'age Increase in all companies,
as well as the offshore compan«
ies, is not going to be a difficult
problem." If the "MAIN JOB" of
the NMU is to "crush and sweep
out the SIU," then we shouldn't
be too harsh on the stooges for
not concerning themselves with
the secondary job of gaining
wage increases and conditions for
the seamen. All the seamen have
to do is to patiently await the
time when, "we (Lawrenson, Cur
ran & Co.) are successful in es
tablishing the NMU as the only'
union on the Atlantic, Gulf and
Great Lakes." What's a few hun
dred years among friends?
Bad Memory!
OUR MAIN JOB is to build the
SIU into a union capable of win
ning higher wages and better
working conditions and job pro
tection for our membership. The
scavengers In the NMU can't pre
vent us from doing this, they can
only make our job more difficult.
The SIU will still be making pro .
gress and forging ahead success
fully completing "Our Main Job"
when such characters as Curran,
Lawrenson, McKenzie, etc., are
nothing but a bad memory.
NOTICE
"Main Job"
The top fraction wrecking
crew are good only forwrecking
unions, not for winning condi
tions. "The main job of the
I (NMU) Reorganizing Committee
Several members have come
into the oce after being dls,
charged from the hospital and
complained that they failed to re
ceive their hospital benefit, while
they were confined; and failed to
receive a visit from the hospital
delegate.
As there Is a large number of
patients In the hospital. It Is well
nigh Impossible to contact those
of our members who fall to in
form the office or hospital dele
gate of their presence In the hos
pital. Get In touch with the office
or ask to see our delegate when
.you are confined in the hospital.
Only in that way can we be made
aware of the members who are
In the hospital entitled to receive>
benefits.
i' '*V'
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A
In this attack, the "Associated
Farmers" will have the assis
tance of the newlyformed "Mer
chants and Manufacturers' Asso
ciation of Southern California,"
which has !:aen set up as a "co
ordinating agency" for all groups
seeking to establish the open
shop in and around Los Angeles.
Labor Ready for Attack
It is to replace such outfits as
"Southern Californians" and "The
Neutral Thousands," which were
exposed and discredited in inves
tigations by the La Follette Civil
Liberties Committee and the Na
tional Labor Relations Board.
• However, West Coast union
chiefs are confident they will be
able to resist the attack. In the
past few years, they have been
subject to one antilabor offensive
after another, but have emerged
stronger than before.
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